And If The Stars Should Disappear
by andromedabennet
Summary: AU: Annabeth spent six years with her absuive father before she finally left. Percy and his mom find her and take her in, letting her into their family. She grows up in the Jackson house, and along the way Percy will teach her to trust again. T for abuse.
1. The Bells of New York City

**AN – Hi! It's been quite a long time since I've shown my face on fanfiction with a story of my own, but I decided to write this after reading some similar stories. Some of them were cute, but none of them felt right to me. Obviously, my version of "right" is different than everyone else's, so you may love a different version and hate mine, but I wanted to try to write this overdone cliché myself.**

** This chapter is introductory and ended up being pretty long by my standards, so I'm not sure if further chapters will be this long. Also, its 3****rd**** person omniscient right now, but I'm not sure if it will continue that way.**

** It's pretty much all happy mushy stuff until the end, where the plot actually begins. Next chapter will start the real story. This is just cutesy stuff.**

** Enjoy!**

The Jacksons had been having a wonderful night. It was a chilly November evening, and even though it was only the sixth day of the month, there had been an unexpected temperature decrease in New York this year, which meant one thing: snow!

Just as one should expect from any seven year old, Percy Jackson loved the snow. Sure it was cold, sure it stuck to his clothing and chilled him to his very core, and sure it made his cheeks red and his fingers numb, but none of that _mattered_. Honestly, who could resist the tempting offer of a well-fought snowball fight in Central Park? Of course, Mrs. Jackson-Blofis was more than a little wary about being out in this weather—it was snowing rather hard for the better part of the day—but she couldn't say no to the pleading eyes of her son when he asked her to play with him in the blizzard of white flakes.

"Please, Mommy? It'll be a date, just me and you!" He had said with a big, innocent smile on his face. And—just as he had hoped—she had fallen for his adorable seven year old charm. She could already imagine him as a heart-breaker one day . . .

Paul, her husband and Percy's step father, had been on a business trip to the delightfully warm state of Florida for what he considered to be an "important teachers convention" that he simply _had_ to attend, which meant that Sally had to endure Percy's snowy-assaults alone. Not that she minded, but she off-handedly wondered if somehow Paul had planned this. She wouldn't put it passed her husband, for he often enjoyed using his man-to-man talks with Percy against her. Like last time for instance . . . it had taken her _forever_ to convince Percy that he absolutely had no use for a razor, since he had nothing to shave. He just pouted and said that Paul said that men shave, and therefore he should too. He was distraught about his "unmanliness" for a week after that incident, and Sally—on more than one occasion— caught Percy glaring at Paul's shaving cream when he thought no one was looking.

Needless to say, Sally usually monitored Paul and Percy's man-to-man conversations after that.

By eight o'clock, it was beginning to get much too cold for Sally's fingers to tolerate handling another snowball. She walked over to her baby boy—ahem, little boy, as Percy hated being called a baby, much to Sally's dismay—and took his mitten-covered left hand in her own.

"Mommy, are we leaving now?" Percy asked with a slight frown. His green eyes were as big as saucers, and Sally couldn't help but think about how he was going to use them against her as often as possible as soon as he learned of the power they held over her.

She nodded, tightening her brown scarf around her icy neck. "It's getting late, Percy. I think the snow storm is starting to get worse. We need to get home before it gets really messy out here. Plus, you look absolutely freezing, silly!" She said with a chuckle.

Percy looked at the snow with a confused expression as they walked. Freezing? Was he freezing? Then, as if he had only just realized this now, he made a face, scrunching his features up with distaste. "I think you're right, Mommy," he said, wiggling his fingers under his mittens, as if to test how numb they were. "I forgot about being cold until you said so, but now . . ." he stopped mid-thought, but shivered to get his point across.

Sally tugged on his blue hat, making sure that the fabric covered his exposed—and very red—ears. "Don't worry, we'll take a cab back home, and then we can have hot chocolate and blue cookies, okay?" He looked up at her face with a big smile, and she immediately mirrored it. He instantly started tugging on her hand more, trying to speed up their pace. After all, blue cookies were waiting for him at home, and that was the ultimate incentive to hustle his butt out of the cold and into the warmth of a cab.

"Percy," Sally laughed. "Not so fast! You have a lot more energy than Mommy does, my silly little boy." She smiled as she tried to keep up with the enthusiastic child next to her (well, _technically_ he was several steps ahead of her, but her longer strides helped her catch up in the end).

"So . . ." Sally said, trying to continue with their small talk. She didn't want Percy to lose interest in their conversation. Because, really, she could clearly see the squirrel sitting about fifteen feet away, and she did not need her son to start terrorizing the woodland creatures. His ADHD got the better of him like that sometimes. "Do you know what you are going to ask Santa for this year? Christmas is next month and you haven't even started making a list!"

Percy smiled at the thought of Christmas morning in his little apartment, showing off the lovely gap in his teeth where his recently lost tooth had once resided, but then he suddenly frowned. His face showed worry, and he voiced his fear. "Mommy, what if Santa doesn't bring me presents this year? I haven't been a very 'well behaved' boy. Miss Tishy told me that last week when I accidentally ran with scissors . . . again. But it was an accident, honest!"

Fear lit up behind his eyes as he stared into his mother's face. She squeezed his hand as they walked, and then said, "Of course Santa will bring you gifts. He knows how hard you try to be extra well behaved, and I know for a fact that he won't forget to get you something nice this year." She smiled.

"Promise?"

"I promise. But now you need to make a list, otherwise Santa won't know what to get you! He'll be forced to bring you a whole bunch a Barbie dolls."

Percy gasped, as if the mere _idea_ of unwrapping a Barbie on Christmas morning was painful. "NO! No, I don't want _any _Barbies! Got that, Santa?" He panicked and spat out the word "Barbies" like it was acid on his tongue. If he found a doll under the wrapping paper . . . he would never be able to live it down.

Mrs. Jackson-Blofis laughed at her son's sudden outburst. "Okay, okay. No Barbies. I'll make sure Santa keeps them far away from our Christmas tree, alright?"

Percy's face immediately relaxed, as if the weight of the world had been lifted off his shoulders. No Barbies. His mom promised.

He began rattling off things that he wanted, suddenly very afraid that if he didn't make a list, he would be threatened with something even more heinous. "I want a sword, and a shield, and . . . and a flame thrower!" He smiled to himself, feeling very proud of making such a wise Christmas list. Flame throwers, after all, could be very useful to seven year olds.

"Definitely not, honey," Sally said with a smirk. "Our apartment doesn't allow weaponry." He tried to protest, but she held up her hand with a knowing smile, "And that includes flame throwers."

"Okay, fine. I'm willing to forget about that, but only if I can get a military tank," he bargained.

"A toy tank, yes. A real tank . . . well, I don't really think it would fit in our apartment, and the city of New York probably wouldn't appreciate a tank parked out on the street." She smiled when his eye brows scrunched together, as if he was trying to figure out a way to solve the military tank problem. Finally, he sighed and gave up. She patted his shoulder reassuringly, and said with a chuckle, "Maybe we'll try making your list again tomorrow."

They fell into a comfortable silence, having almost made it to a place suitable for hailing a cab at night. They had come upon the outer edge of the park when Percy suddenly stopped walking. His eyes widened, and he began running slightly to the right. "Mommy, follow me!"

She started chasing after him, fearing what could've caught his attention. She prayed that it wouldn't be another dog. The last time that had happened, she had ended up dealing with the less-than-polite dog owner. Sally had apologized profusely to the stuck up woman, but the lady wasn't thrilled about Percy getting her dog all riled up. It ended up being a headache for everyone.

Percy ran until he reached a park bench that was slowly piling up with snow. There was a little girl there, and he looked at her pale face and her dark blue lips. He touched his hand to her face, cupping her cheek. It was like touching a block of ice.

Sally ran up behind her son, saying "Percy, what are—", but she stopped when she saw the scene in front of her.

"Mom, she's freezing."

The little girl's appearance was rather startling. She had very pretty grey eyes and what appeared to be golden curls, but the bitter temperatures she was suffering through had made her look deathly ill. She was very pale from the cold, looking almost ghostly white except for the dark rings under her eyes. Her dark blue lips contrasted so greatly against her current complexion that she looked like the bodies that got pulled out of the water in _Titanic_. She was shivering and her teeth chattered constantly, but she did not talk to the strangers in front of her. Her eyes were glazed over, almost as if she wasn't seeing them at all.

Percy noticed her clothing, which consisted of nothing more than a pair of denim jeans, a tee shirt, a hoodie, and her sneakers, all of which were completely soaked through from the snow that had accumulated. She had a small backpack next to her, but if she had anything warm to put on inside of it, he could assume that she would've already thought to put it on.

He immediately took off his cobalt blue winter coat, knowing that she needed the warmth more than he did. "Take this," he said, extending the hand that held his thick jacket. The bitter wind hit him almost instantaneously, but he knew that he would be okay as long as he wasn't without a coat for too long.

She looked into his eyes, as if she had finally broken out of her trance. With fear in her eyes, she looked at the coat, almost as if she thought it would bite her if she dared touch it.

"Go ahead, take it. You're freezing," Percy said encouragingly. She gave it one last wary glance before her lack of body heat finally made her give in. She slid the sleeves over her frozen arms and felt a slight relief run through her body. Her clothing was still damp, and she was still sitting on a bench in a snow storm, but at least now she had _something_.

And that was a heck of a lot more than she usually got.

Percy smiled at her, and then turned to his mother, who had watched the entire scene in front of her. "Mommy, we need to bring her home with us. She feels frozen solid. The snow is getting worse; we can't leave her here."

Sally looked at the little girl, and she crouched down in front of her to look her in the eyes. "Hello, sweetie. My name is Sally Blofis. Are you lost? Do you know where your family is?"

The little girl nodded, as if it was some kind of humorless inside joke that she only shared with herself. "Yes, Mrs. Blofis," she said, though her voice was hoarse and strained. "They are at home. I ran away. Please don't make me go back, I would . . ." She stopped, but then continued in a hushed voice. "I would rather you leave me here to freeze to death than go back there."

She was so frail and exhausted looking. Sally noticed how much pain she had in her eyes when she said that. Dried blood could be seen along her hairline, as if she had hastily tried to wipe it away when it was fresh but hadn't gotten all of it off. She had a bruise on her neck, which just peaked out from under Percy's coat. It looked relatively new.

"Mom, we have to take her home with us. She doesn't have anywhere to go."

Sally looked at Percy, and—in a split second decision—decided that he was right. "Honey, would you like to come home with us?" She asked the blonde in front of her. "We have an apartment not far from here. You could warm yourself up and eat a nice meal. How does that sound?"

The little girl looked back and forth between the two strangers. Even at her tender age of six, she was cautious in dangerous situations. She learned that lesson the hard way a long time ago. She didn't trust people as far as she could throw them, and she had yet to find a single person that her young arms could even lift. But this woman and her son seemed so _genuine_. He was her age. He gave her his jacket and was now suffering through the brutal wind for her. His mother offered her a place to warm up and a meal to curb her appetite. Everything seemed perfect.

She didn't want to sit here all night while her body began to slowly shut down permanently, so she nodded to the woman and attempted to stand up. She was weak though, which made walking a challenge. She tried not to get frustrated at how useless her body was acting, but Percy stuck his hand out, offering to help her walk. She took it gratefully, and the three of them began their walk to a cab that was nearby. They all got in, thankful that the cab was toasty inside, and Sally gave the driver her building's address.

Percy turned to the girl and introduced himself, which he had forgotten to do earlier. "Hi, my name is Percy Jackson and I'm seven. Who are you?" He asked, cocking his head to the side.

She looked into his eyes and winced. She wanted to avoid the question, but she knew that these people were helping her, and she didn't want to upset them. Her father had always been upset with her, and she didn't want that happening here. "My name is Annabeth."

** AN – How was it? Should I continue or abandon ship now? Since this is the first chapter, I would love to get some feedback about what you as readers would like to see in this story. Reviews are welcome. Constructive criticism is appreciated, as long as it is truly constructive! **

** If you enjoyed this story, would you mind answering some questions for me? That way I can make sure I'm writing what you as readers would like to see.**

**Would you like the story to remain in 3****rd**** person omniscient (where its not talking from one person's specific mind, but it can kind of explain what everyone is thinking), or would you prefer it to be in someone's point of view? The thing about POV is that I would probably have to make it switch between Percy and Annabeth if I did that (although I feel like it'll be mainly Annabeth). Sometimes I like when stories do that, so you see what both characters are thinking, but sometimes I think the switching can become confusing. So it's up to you. **

**Is there anything about my writing that you saw as a specific problem or flaw? Did I have typos? Were the characters terribly OOC (while this is an AU, I do honestly hope to keep their main personalities somewhat intact)? Did I confuse you with the way I write? Anything at all.**

**Do you have any ideas for where this could go (I obviously have my own little plan worked out, but I'm one of those terribly unorganized writers who only comes up with the basic plot and then wing it from there.) If anyone has an idea, it'll be greatly appreciated, and I'll credit you if I use it. After all, I'm writing this story for all of **_**you**_**, so it helps to know what you want to see!**

**Do you think I need a beta? Do any of you beta read? (I've never had one, so if I were to get one, they would have to teach me the ropes!)**

**Anyways, thank you in advance for anyone who reads this, and a special thank you to anyone who reviews to tell me how I did! Please be honest and let me know how you feel about it. I tried my hardest, so I hope it will please you, but if not, feel free to let me know!**


	2. Come In With The Rain

The cab pulled up to a New York City apartment and stopped. Before Annabeth could even get a good look at the building, Sally had already pulled out her wallet. She quickly paid the taxi driver and exited the car. Percy gave Annabeth a reassuring glance before he stepped out onto the sidewalk.

Finally, Annabeth nervously pushed the door open and left the warmth of the car. Suddenly, she was all too aware again of her damp clothing. The wind ripped past her, making her feel as if she was being assaulted by ice. The only thing keeping away some of the pain was the blue coat.

_His _blue coat. She smiled in spite of everything. She didn't smile that often anymore—not after all that had happened to her. They had taught her to be timid and fearful of what was around her. But nothing around her _looked_ dangerous. Surely she was safe, right?

She turned her head to the left and slowly took a panoramic view of her surroundings. It wasn't much; just another street in the massive jumble of New York, but it was beautiful. Her wide, childlike eyes took in everything. There were people bustling around on the sidewalks and taxis driving quickly up and down the road. She even noticed a few of the buildings had delightfully eye-catching facades, but she would have to admire them in greater detail later. Right now, the most important thing she saw was the snow. It was . . . well, very pretty. It almost felt wrong to think the thing that had nearly killed her ten minutes ago could be striking, but it was. The little white specks danced around in the wind like in a movie. The snow certainly didn't seem evil. It sparkled under the streetlights in a flurry of little, puffy blobs.

She stuck her palm out to catch some of the snow, but before she could look at it, she felt a hand lightly placed on her shoulder. She turned around to see Percy standing there. He looked at her for a moment, as if trying to wrap his seven year old mind around what he saw in front of him. "Do you want to come in?" He pointed to the building behind him, where his mom was standing by the door. Part of her was slightly tempted to keep watching the snow, but her rational side reminded her that she was going to get numb again if she didn't dry off.

Annabeth starred at him for a second before she slowly nodded. Percy thought that she looked a little puzzled by everything, but he didn't comment on it. Instead, he offered her his hand again, and she took it, even though she couldn't remember the last time she had felt comfortable with any type of physical contact. But this, like everything else about Percy, felt _different_. He didn't feel scary or threatening, but rather caring and gentle. It was a foreign concept to her, but she welcomed it. So instead of pulling her hand back like her instincts told her to, she allowed him to lead her into the building.

Percy and Annabeth walked up to the front of the apartment complex with their hands interlocked. Sally, who had been standing there the entire time watching her son and the shy little girl, opened the door and led them to the staircase. Annabeth basked in the warmth that the apartment building provided as they scaled the stairs.

_No elevator_, she offhandedly thought to herself. Not that an elevator honestly mattered. It was a smaller building that looked rather old, but in a good way. It didn't feel rundown; it felt more like an antique. It felt like a place that any normal child would be happy to call home, even at the expense of walking a few flights of stairs.

When they reached the third floor, Sally led them to a door on the left side of the hall. She unlocked the door to apartment 3C and swung the door open. Once inside, she began shedding her winter outerwear and hung it neatly on a peg nailed into the wall. Percy followed her example, taking off his snow pants, hat, gloves, boots, and his snow-dampened hoodie, leaving him in a pair of jeans and an orange shirt. Unlike his mom, Percy left all of his clothing in a massive pile on the floor. Sally rolled her eyes and smiled before she began picking up his mess. She turned to grab Percy's gloves when the very damp little girl in the corner caught her eye.

"Percy," Sally said, "would you mind grabbing a shirt and a pair of sweatpants from your room for Annabeth? We can't let her stay in her wet clothing all night, and something of yours will surely fit until we can get to a store."

Percy just nodded at his mom before he hurried into his room. Without even thinking about it, Annabeth followed him. Somewhere in her mind she registered the fact that not only had she not been invited, but she also should feel uncomfortable with this. But her instincts won over as she entered the room behind Percy.

Percy went to his closet and picked out a Spiderman shirt—man did he love Spiderman!—and a green hoodie. Then he took out two pairs of pants from his dresser drawers. He gave the hoodie and a pair of pants to Annabeth and told her to change.

Sally had just finished putting away all of Percy's snow clothing when he came back out of his room with clothing in his hands. She raised an eyebrow at her son, as if to say:_ What are you doing?_

"Mommy, is it all right if I change in your room? Annabeth needed somewhere to change, so I let her borrow mine." He paused. "Is that okay?"

Sally realized that she probably looked really surprised—which is exactly how she felt—so she smiled at her son, and said "Of course that's all right, Percy. I was just surprised at how nice you're being to Annabeth. It's very grown up of you!" She laughed and ruffled his black hair.

Percy pouted. "I'm always nice!"

"Of course you are, but you're being _super extra_ nice today!" She said, hoping that her phrasing would be satisfactory for the mind of a kid.

He smiled at his mom, and told her, "Annabeth seems nice. I wanna help her. Do you think we can? I would really like that, Mommy."

"I would really like that too, Perce. Now scoot your boot into my room and go change so we can eat blue cookies!" She said playfully. He giggled at his mother's playful antics before turning around and walking to the door next to his. Sally started towards the kitchen when she heard her son's voice again.

"Hey, Mom?" He asked, turning to face her. "If I'm acting as grown up as you said I am, does that mean it's time for me to start shaving? Because Paul said . . ."

Sally groaned, but her smile never dimmed from her face as she looked at Percy and said, "No, Sweetie. I promise I'll let you know as soon as you're old enough." Then she laughed and continued making her way into the kitchen.

Within a few minutes, Sally had managed to put on a pot of chicken noodle soup, make hot chocolate, and bake the cookie dough that she had put in the fridge before the snowball fight. By the time Annabeth and Percy came back, she was already setting the table with food. Both she and Percy had already eaten dinner, but Annabeth looked absolutely famished, and Percy never turned down an extra meal.

"Here, Annabeth," she said, looking at the petite blonde girl in her son's clothing. "Let me take your damp clothes and I'll make sure they get washed tomorrow."

Annabeth nodded, allowing Sally to take the ball of clothing that she was holding before returning to her task of looking all around the room. The apartment seemed quaint, but she refused to let her guard down so soon. What if this was a trap? Was she in danger? Should she slip out of the apartment in the middle of the night?

Of the millions of thoughts running through Annabeth's head, the most prominent one was: Did these people actually care about her? It all seemed too good to be true. A loving mother and her very polite son taking in a complete stranger out of the kindness of their hearts? Her father had often watched horror films—as if his life wasn't enough of one as it was—and she knew all too well that this was how so many started. Everything would seem perfectly peachy in the beginning, but the underlying dark music told otherwise.

"Annabeth, dear, take a seat," Sally said, pulling a chair out for her. "I'll get you some soup and a hot chocolate. Do you like chicken noodle?"

Annabeth could only nod. She was too preoccupied with her thoughts. But as she sat down and stared at the green-eyed boy across the table, she realized something.

Should she be scared? Yes, of course. Every rational part of her young mind told her that this was dangerous.

But was she scared?

No.

**AN – Hey guys! I'm sorry if this chapter was really uneventful and short. I promise that the next chapter has more young Percy and Annabeth cuteness, but this was just sort of to show how Annabeth felt about being in the Jackson's apartment. After this chapter, we will start to learn more about Annabeth's past and she will start getting closer to the ever-adorable Perseus.**

**So… I'm sorry about the disappointing length, but I have Band Camp for the next two weeks. I am on my high school's Color Guard (y'know, the girls who spin the big flags around at Friday night football games?). I'm actually an incoming freshman, so I'm learning all the routines really slowly because they are all brand new for me. It's a lot of work and the hours are crazy, so I might not get to update very frequently for the next two weeks, but I'll try to not leave you hanging for too long. If I work on another chapter for the rest of the week, I think I can get chapter three up in a few days. Is that okay? I don't want them to all turn out rushed and crappy because of my busy schedule.**

**Anyways, this was obviously a filler, so don't be too distressed about it.**

…

**I have two important things to say. Firstly, I think that I'm going to start asking questions at the end of each chapter, which you can answer in a review if you so choose. So today's questions are: **_**Have you ever participated in your school's Band Camp? Did you enjoy it? Did you play an instrument or were you one of the dancers/majorettes/colorguards?**_

**Also, announcement number two: I am going to name each chapter after a song. More than likely the song will have nothing to do with the chapter except for the title. So the song lyrics won't match the story or anything, but it will help me out a lot. Plus, you guys will get to see some of the bizarre stuff I have on my ipod, which is always entertaining. **

**Last chapter was called **_**The Bells of New York City **_**by Josh Groban. This chapter is called **_**Come in with the Rain **_**by Taylor Swift. Also, the title of the story ("And if the Stars Should Disappear") is a line from the song **_**With You**_**, also by Josh Groban.**

**So, if you've managed to read my entire author's note, then I truly thank you. Review with the word **_**Groban **_**and I'll give you special mention in my next AN! Or don't, because it's completely up to you. Maybe I'll even sneak you a peak at next chapter if I can find the time :) The mystery word is **_**Groban**_**, don't forget!**

**Thank you for reading, everyone! Feel free to let me know how I did!**


	3. Fairytale

Sally studied the small girl sitting at her kitchen table before putting a bowl of soup down in front of her. Annabeth had blonde curly hair that dipped down passed her shoulders and grey eyes like storm clouds. She was a puzzling little girl to say the least. Sometimes she seemed much older than her tender age of six; she would look at everything around her with a cold and calculating stare. She seemed fearful and cautious, like she was waiting for someone to toss her back into the streets. But there were other times, barely a few seconds long at most, were Sally could see the little girl still inside of Annabeth. Her wide, childlike eyes would eagerly take in everything around her, like she was trying to drink in the fact that this was _real_.

And that was what made Sally's heart break the most.

The more she thought about Annabeth, the more Sally wanted to envelope her in a big hug. She remembered being a young girl growing up without parents, and she knew how hard it was. But here was this adorable child, not even seven years old, who was living in the streets of New York City. Annabeth was a little girl who had had her innocence taken away by whatever monsters she was forced to call her family. And it was painful for Sally to think about the fact that she could never be the carefree six year old that she deserved to be.

Percy followed his mother's gaze to the girl occupying the seat across from him. She was . . . well, she was _different_. Good different or bad different, Percy didn't really know. She was like nothing he had ever come across before. As a native New Yorker, he was always well aware of the fact that the world could be a dangerous place. People in this city rarely sugar-coated anything, but Percy had never felt the wrath of humanity before; not like this.

Annabeth . . . she was a brand new concept to him. Percy had seen people on the streets plenty of times. His mom loved to make cookies or sandwiches and give them to the people who lived on the streets near their apartment. Heck, Percy had even given up his entire _ten dollar _allowance once for a particularly kind man to buy himself dinner with! But . . . little girls were supposed to live with their mommies and daddies, weren't they? So why was she sitting on a bench in a snowstorm, begging not to be taken back to her family? Didn't she love her parents?

Didn't they love her?

What a silly question. Percy _knew_ that parents had to love their kids! Didn't they have to fill out papers and apply for parenthood? His mommy had once told him that parents had to spend nine months working to have a baby. He was pretty sure that that meant parents spent the better part of a year signing papers and all that yucky stuff adults seem to enjoy.

Percy was just starting to learn cursive, and he figured that anyone who would willingly spend nine months writing their name in cursive on documents probably _really_ wanted a baby.

So Annabeth's family obviously wanted to have her as a daughter. His logic seemed so flawless in his innocent mind.

But then Percy remembered his own father. He had been there in the beginning of his son's life; just barely enough that Percy could picture his face. He had walked out on Sally and Percy not long after the birth though, and that didn't seem to fit in with his logic at all. Hadn't _his_ father wanted _him_?

His brain did a one-eighty in his head, as if everything that he thought to be true was suddenly backwards. Sally called his name, and he was glad that she pulled him out of the fog that was settling over his mind. Too much thinking was going to cause his head to explode, and Percy was almost positive that his mother would not be happy if she was forced to clean gooey brain-mush out of the carpet.

"Percy, the cookies are done. Eat your soup, and I'll let you have a few, okay?" She asked, pulling a tray of cookies out of the oven.

Annabeth was animatedly eating her portion. It was the first actual meal she had eaten in days, and it made her feel absolutely wonderful. Her face lit up with a true smile for the first time, and Sally noticed how delightfully carefree and happy Annabeth looked because of something as small as a bowl of soup. Sally put the blue cookies on a plate and set them down in the center of the table.

Sitting down in her seat at the head of the table, Sally said, "My, my, Annabeth. You sure seem to be enjoying yourself." She smiled at the very young—and suddenly very _energetic_—child.

"Oh, yes. Your food is very good!" She said as she bounced up and down slightly. "May I please have a second bowl?"

Annabeth hadn't realized what she had said until after the words had already escaped her mouth. But now it was too late to take them back, and she knew she wouldn't be let off easy for this. She ceased her bouncing; her smile vanished from her once again solemn face.

Sally's face morphed into a look of confusion as Annabeth pushed her seat away from the table and stood at Sally's side. She looked into Annabeth's wide, fearful eyes, but she still couldn't comprehend what was going on around her.

"Annabeth, why are you—?"

"I'm sorry, ma'am," Annabeth said, keeping her voice as level as possible. Crying was considered weak, and Annabeth had spent her entire life learning to be strong. To show weakness, to cry . . . that had been unthinkable in her old house. Only when she was alone did she allow herself to lose control.

"Honey, why on Earth are you sorry?" Sally asked with compassion in her voice. It was Annabeth's turn to be confused.

"Well . . . I spoke at the dinner table! And I asked for _more food_!" She exclaimed, as if trying to make sense of what was happening. Her voice quieted, and she added in a whisper, "Aren't you going to punish me?"

Percy silently took in what was happening in front of him. Annabeth was afraid because she wanted more food?

No—Percy reasoned—it had to be something more important than that.

Sally was shocked to say the least. Annabeth thought that she would get punished for this? Was this how her family treated her at home? She almost voiced her question until she remembered that she had only met Annabeth an hour ago. This had to be handled . . . tactfully.

"Annabeth," she started, "in this family, we don't _ever_ punish anyone for talking at the dinner table or wanting more food. We all like each other here, okay? And we take care of each other, just like we'll take care of you."

Annabeth's eyes gleamed with innocence once more. "Do you promise?" She asked, looking between Sally and Percy.

"Of course," Sally replied with a smile. Percy nodded.

"Thank you, Mrs. Jackson," Annabeth said with a smile. The insides of her stomach filled with an unrecognizable emotion. She felt small waves of it at first, flowing deep within her, but now it felt more like a tsunami. It was big and strong and unavoidable, but for the first time in her short life, she wasn't afraid. These waters—these emotions—were like nothing she had ever experienced before; she wasn't drowning in anger and fear and sorrow, she was drowning in love.

Butterflies danced in her stomach and happiness coursed through her veins for what felt like the first time. She was nearly positive that she had never felt so cheerful in her entire life, to be frank.

She related this feeling to the many princess movies she had watched in her life (although she had been much more interested in Peter Pan and Hercules than Cinderella and Ariel). It was like . . . she had spent six years locked in a dungeon filled with monsters, but it was worth it, because she found a queen among women and her darling son, the prince, who took her into their castle and treated her as if she was their own.

Not that princess movies had ever been her favorite thing to watch or anything. But that didn't really matter; what mattered was the fact that she had been saved at all. She wasn't too keen on being the damsel in distress of the story, but she had the rest of her life to turn her fairy-tale into something that would make Mulan proud. Right now she needed all the help she could get.

"Annabeth, do you still want anything more to eat? We have plenty; it's really no trouble," Sally asked. Annabeth looked so petite; another bowl of soup couldn't hurt.

"No than—" she replied, but was cut off by a yawn. She hadn't thought about it much previously, but suddenly the aches went bone-deep, and all she could think about was lying down. Sleep sounded so blissfully peaceful at the moment. "I'm a little tired."

Sally gave Annabeth a knowing smile, as if she too could feel the sleepiness enter her body. "Sleep sounds like a great idea. Would you mind sharing a room with Percy for tonight? I mean, he could always take the couch if you aren't comfortable with that," she said, adding on the last part hastily. Percy nodded his head, even though he wasn't the biggest fan of spending nights on the lumpy pull-out bed.

Percy would sleep on the couch for her? That was . . . strangely, that was one of the nicest things anyone had ever offered to do for her. She was surprised at first—surprised that people this wonderful even _existed_—but she quickly exited her stupor before saying, "No, no, it's fine, Mrs. Jackson. I wouldn't want to kick Percy out of his room."

Percy smiled brightly at her before leading her into his bedroom once more. The small lamp in the corner emitted light that danced off of the cerulean colored walls.

Before she could take in her surroundings, she heard his voice. "Will you hand me those blankets please?" He asked, pointing to a stack of neatly folded quilts at the end of his bed. Without speaking, she picked up the heap and turned, handing it to him. He quickly spread them out across the floor, layering them to make it a little more comfortable. Once he deemed the makeshift bed satisfactory, he grabbed an extra pillow from his bed and plopped down.

Annabeth looked at him strangely. "Don't you want your bed? I can take the floor . . ."

He gave her a soft smile. "No, it's all right. I want you to have my bed." She gave him a disbelieving look. "Really, Annabeth. I pinky promise."

She adverted her eyes and mumbled a soft "thank you" before climbing into the bed. Once she was under the covers, she felt a weight lift off her shoulders. She snuggled further under the heavy comforter and let her body sink into the mattress.

She stared at the wave-like patterns on the blanket until everything went black. Percy had turned off the little lamp that had given the room a warm glow. Now, everything just felt empty and dark. She felt alone again.

There was a moment of silence before Annabeth mustered up the courage to voice her question. ". . . Percy? Do you, uh . . . Do you have a nightlight?" She whispered the words like the scared little girl that she was.

"Uh, yeah," he said. "Just a sec." She heard movement from the floor, and within a few seconds, a small light appeared from the corner of the room. The illuminations allowed her to see the strange look on his face.

"What?" She asked, confused by the bizarre look he was giving her.

He was silent for a moment, as if trying to find a tactful way to voice his question. "It's just that . . . Well, you lived on the streets. But you're afraid of the dark. And I guess it just seemed backwards in my mind."

Her young mind tried to process what he was saying. In an effort to explain herself, she said the only intelligent thing that came to mind. "I guess . . . Well, I lived on the streets because I wanted to run away from all of the darkness in my life. To me, running away was less scary than staying there and being surrounded by all the emptiness . . ." She trailed off, hoping that this would make sense to him. Upon seeing his mystified expression, she awkwardly added, "And so I don't really like the dark."

He locked eyes with her. His gaze was intense, but not in an intimidating way. "You are confusing, Annabeth," Percy mused. Then he smirked. "But believe me when I say that I'm going to figure you out."

Then, without so much as a warning, he slumped down on his pile of blankets; he was asleep almost instantly.

** AN – Hello, my lovely readers! I'm sorry this update took so long. I hope the chapter turned out okay.**

** I would like to thank: **_**AnimeRoxx, PJOBookWorm, Yiana, Chasingfireflies101, Demigod536, Moondapple18, **_**and a special thank you to my fellow Grobanites: **_**BeautyandtheBeast, Angel's Detective, and Grace.**_** Thank you all for reading my unbearably long AN from last chapter!**

** Also, I had a reviewer mention that Annabeth is older than Percy in the series. I made her younger than Percy because it made more sense to me. Percy's birthday (August 18****th****) would probably make him the oldest kid in his grade, right? So if Annabeth was older than him (even by a month or two), wouldn't that mean that she would be the youngest kid in the grade above Percy? I wanted them to be in the same grade, so this just made more sense to me. Sorry for any confusion! **

** So . . . Percy and Annabeth will start to get closer after this. Yay!**

** This chapter is named after Fairytale by Ludovico Einaudi. It's a very beautiful piano song! **

** Finally, I would like to thank anyone who has reviewed my past two chapters or will review this one. You guys are all so unbelievably amazing. You all keep me writing! **


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